MIDWEEK EDITION Inside
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Curry County We Love It Here Special Section
Wednesday November 6 2019
Milliman
www.currypilot.com
Brookings, Oregon
SERVING CURRY COUNTY SINCE 1946
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Changes coming at The Pilot next week
BIGGEST WAVE EVER surfing legend greg noll recalls
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regon-based Country Media Inc. purchased The Pilot, as well as the Del Norte Triplicate in Crescent City, out of bankruptcy on July 1. Now, four months later, The Pilot’s subscribers will see changes in how and when it’s delivered. Beginning Nov. 12, the twiceweekly newspaper serving Brookings and Gold Beach will arrive in the mailboxes rather than on subscribers’ doorsteps. “We’re changing our delivery system, from adult carriers to the U.S. Postal Service, primarily because of legislation passed recently by the State of California,” said The Pilot’s publisher and co-owner, Carol Hungerford. “Bob Berkowitz, a member of the Del Norte County Board of Supervisors, summarized why we probably would need to make this change in a recent Triplicate guest opinion.” Wrote Berkowitz: “(Assembly Bill) 5, by Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzales of San Diego, would treat newspaper carriers as employees rather than independent contractors. As employees, they would get employee benefits like health care, retirement, sick leave, etc., benefits that are extremely costly to their employer. “It’s no secret that thousands of
on its 50th ANNIVERSARY David Hayes Staff Writer
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Surfrider Foundation Cronulla in Cronulla, Australia celebrated the 60th anniversary of Greg Noll bringing the first Malibu board to Australia in 1956. The group posted a classic photo of Noll, in his signature black-and-white swim shorts, riding a big wave in style. Courtesy photo.
n Dec. 4, 1969, three storm systems converged on Oahu, Hawaii to create once-ina-lifetime breaks for big-wave surfers of that era. But those conditions seemingly proved too hazardous, even for the most adventurous at Waimea Bay. However, around the peak of the North Shore was Makaha Beach, where an undeterred Greg Noll rode into surfing folklore, braving what many eyewitnesses swear was - still is - the largest wave ever attempted un-towed, one 35 to 40 feet high. “I didn’t know this was the 50th anniversary of Makaha,” Noll said, between bites of his salad at Crescent City’s Los Compadre’s restaurant. “Wow, 50 damn years. I knew I was gettin’ old, but...” Noll was sitting with his wife, Laura, as he recalled his legendary days as a big-wave surfer. Ironically, Noll said, even in an era when on any given day there would be 100 photographers for every surfer to record their exploits, no photos exist of his Makaha run. “I was in charge of the camera, but I didn’t do very well. I was kind of short,” Laura Noll acknowledged. “It was so far out, and so much haze and (stuff) on the water, they couldn’t get a picture,” Greg Noll said. “I think everybody was pretty much spellbound by the size of the surf that day. They weren’t even thinking of pictures. “We had some of the best surfers in the world, and it just blew everybody’s socks off, the size of the waves that day.” Noll was quoted saying at the time that he had been waiting for just the right wave, “If I don’t do this, I’ll be 80 years old, banging my cane around, still pissed off that I’d gone chicken on the one day I’d worked for my whole life. So, I really didn’t have a choice.” So, he chose his wave, rode it to the bottom and wiped out. “Everybody said that when he got to the bottom, he was gone, that he’d never survive that kind of wipeout,” Laura Noll said.
More Pilot on Page A3
‘On Golden Pond’ hits center stage B
rookings Harbor Community Theater’s presentation of “On Golden Pond,” which opened Nov. 2 at 7 p.m., continues Nov. 8-9, and 15-16, as well as Sunday performances on Nov. 10 and 17 at 2 p.m. The theater is at 15542 U.S. Highway 101. General-admission tickets are $15. Seniors’ and students’ tickets are $13. Director Tiffany Van Maren said this particular play was selected because it’s an iconic story that’s nostalgic for so many people. “The familiar setting of a cabin on the water with family, for better or for worse, helps many to connect to the eternal themes of love, longing and forgiveness,” she said. “When Brookings Harbor Community Theater approached me about directing the show, I was drawn to it immediately after reading the first two pages, which almost perfectly described the cabin my grandparents built in central Minnesota.” Van Maren said the benefits of community theater in Brookings are widespread for actors and audience members alike. “The theater is a place of belonging and a place to build confidence,” she said. “Younger actors build reading and language skills. Many adult friends, teens in transitional years, youth of all ages, even my own children have found fun there in the dreary winter months with friends, as well as safety and happiness there while dealing with major life
More Wave on Page A4
Blessing of the Fleet
Remembering those lost at sea A
Jeremy C. Ruark Pilot Editor
solemn ceremony at Brookings Harbor on Friday marked the third-annual Blessing of the Fleet, a memorial to those who have been lost at sea. A small bell was rung as the names of each of the local victims lost at sea were read. Father Bernie Lindley of St. Timothy’s Episcopal Church in Brookings, who conducted the blessing, said that since 1962, 33 people have died in ocean mishaps in More sea on Page A2
Index
Classifieds.................B2-4 Crosswords...............A6 Calendar...................B4
Weather HIGH LOW
Sat 69 46
Past four days
Sun 68 47
Mon 69 49
Tues 60 48
5-day forecast, tides and complete weather: Page A8
Those gathered at Brookings Harbor for the Blessing of the Fleet hold their hands to their hearts during the U.S. Coast Guard Color Guard flag presentation. Photo by Jeremy C. Ruark.
Tides LOW HIGH LOW HIGH
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